The production of documents such as checks, bank drafts, traveler's checks, currency and the like has special problems associated therewith not normally associated with the production of ordinary printed matter. For example, such documents are prone to unlawful duplication or counterfeiting. Therefore, in order to eliminate or minimize such unlawful acts, the documents are printed using special paper, special inks, and in highly sophisticated and complex patterns.
In addition, security requirements dictate that each of such documents be accounted for by the printing thereon in one or more areas data in the form of serialized numeric and/or alpha-numeric indicia. Such serialization enables the issuer of such documents to maintain a record as to what documents are in circulation. In the case of traveler's checks the issuer has a means of maintaining a record of the precise checks which have been issued to particular customers. Thus, checks that are lost or stolen are easily replaceable and counterfeit or unlawfully duplicated checks are easily identifiable.
Also for various reasons, for example, aesthetics, guaranty of authenticity of origin and genuineness of the document, it is desirable that such documents meet certain quality standards. Thus, much effort is expended by the various agencies and businesses issuing such documents to assure the release of only those documents which meet predetermined quality criteria. Thus, governments issuing currency and businesses issuing documents such as traveler's checks expend great effort to prevent the issuance of flawed or imperfect documents.
Presently known methods of accomplishing the aforegoing, for example, in currency or traveler's check production require that each document be visually inspected for flaws by a human inspector. In practice, the documents are printed in sheets of, for example 8.times.4 documents with each sheet containing 32 documents. Each document is printed with serialized indicia. If all the documents pass the visual inspection for quality, the sheets are cut into individual documents and stacked sequentially according to their serial number.
On the other hand, when visual inspection uncovers one or more flawed documents, the documents are rejected. However, in order that consecutive serialization be maintained, the rejected documents must be replaced with documents previously printed save for the serial numbers. These documents then have the appropriate serial numbers printed thereon and manually placed in correct sequential order.
As can be readily appreciated, the foregoing described procedure of inspection and replacement of rejected documents is time consuming, prone to human error, and costly.
The present invention relates to an apparatus wherein the foregoing procedure of inspection and printing serial numbers is fully automated.